NAN ROSENTHAL

Sloane BrownTHE BALTIMORE SUN

Nan Rosenthal loves to be creative with her style. In her work as an event coordinator and public relations consultant for nonprofit organizations, she must stay professional. The 72-year-old Pikesville resident looked stylishly put-together when we "Glimpsed" her at a holiday party thrown by Sascha Wolhandler and Steve Suser. "I usually wear something fun - a pin or some kind of accessory, something that brings some personality [to the outfit]. ... It makes me feel better, and it creates conversation, too."

Where it came from: The coat and the sweater came from Macy's. The pants are part of a suit she bought at Loehmann's. She got the pashmina from a street vendor in New York City. She's had her shoes for years. She bought the pins to go with a suit she wore for her daughter's bat mitzvah 27 years ago. She found the earrings in a shop in West Virginia. She found the handbag at Crafts Concepts.

How she shops: "Nordstrom is always good. I hit Loehmann's. If I'm looking for something special, I'm not going to hit Target. But I'll go to Target or Kohl's ... to find a little something to add punch to my wardrobe - a little color, an accessory. ... I also shop catalogs. I like Spiegel and Newport News."

She mixes the old with the new: "I save things, but I like to get one or two things that are trendy each year. It's very hard for me to give clothes away. ... Some of my things go back to when the kids were little, like my pins. ... The funny part is when I do mix and match something, say, from 1990-something with a brand-new piece, I always get a compliment on the older piece."

She loves color: "I wear almost every color. ... My favorite color is magenta. I don't have a lot [of major pieces] in magenta, but I do have a lot of accent pieces in that color. ... My moods definitely dictate what I put on."

Her fashion do's and don'ts: "Suits work for me; suits with a flair. I always feel safe in a suit. ... I stay away from sleeveless dresses. I'm not really happy with my arms. There's a part of them that keeps on waving even after I've stopped."